Dutch military unit under German command

By Maxime Zech on June 12, 2014 - 11:45

U.S. Army Staff Sgt. Derek Renaud, 34, of Angola, New York, looks on as an Afghan national army soldier tries zeroing his weapon at Kabul Military Training Center, March 17. Renaud, officer in charge of the range during qualification and zeroing of M16s, . (Source: Wikimedia)

A complete Dutch military unit is combining with a German army unit to come under German command for the first time in history. The 'orange-white' unit will be used by NATO as a quickly-deployable unit all over the globe.

Over 2100 land military infantries of the Air Manoeuvre Brigade in Assen and Schaarsbergen will become members of the new Division Schnelle Kräfte (Or Rapid Forces Division, DSK) tomorrow. The Division will be led by a two-star General. Second in command of this 12,000-man strong unit will be a Dutch Brigadier.

The Ministry of Defense is calling this a "historic milestone." Defense minister Hennis and her german colleague Von der Leyen are present in Hessen, where the military integration of the two countries will be officially instated tomorrow.

The unit should be available for NATO to send all over the world in 2018. Headquarters for the unit will be in Stadtaallendorf.

The Dutch DSK units will keep using their barracks in Assen and Schaarsbergen. They will be joined by German soldiers "in the framework of cross-pollination", according to lieutenant-colonel Remy van Strien of the Royal Army.